After historic season, Kinston out for more, starting with MFCU Jamboree

Thursday

Aug 11, 2016 at 5:00 AM

Rick Scoppe Daily News Staff jdnsports

So what does a team do for an encore after finishing 15-1, with the lone loss in the NCHSAA 2-A state championship?

Win it all.

Of course, that’s easier said then done. But that’s the goal for Kinston, which faces Northside and Southwest in the third annual Marine Federal Credit Union Football Jamboree on Saturday night at Northside High School.

The Vikings and Monarchs scrimmage at 7:30 p.m. and then Kinston will take on Southwest after that.

“The only way they can be the best team in school history is to go win it all. That’s their goal right now,” Kinston coach Ryan Gieselman said. “We have to go 16-0 for an encore to make up what we did last year.”

And what a year it was.

Kinston went through the regular season unbeaten, including a 22-13 win over White Oak – the two teams play this year Sept. 9 at Kinston. Not until the state final did the Vikings lose, falling 57-21 to Shelby.

“It was a great year,” Gieselman said. “It’s the best in school history. Hat’s off to our senior class. We lost 21 guys. But we’ve got good core group coming back that played a whole lot last year for us.”

While the losses were substantial, Gieselman said there has been carryover from last year, saying the players have a “different pep” in their step in practice.

“It’s good,” he added. “We’ve got good numbers. We’ve got a lot of different, new kids out that are interested in football because of the run we had last year.”

The Vikings return three starters on offense and four on defense, which means, in the coach’s words, “we’re depleted.”

“But we had a lot of guys who played in the rotation,” he said. “One of our receivers (Kam’ryn Webster) is going to play quarterback for us. ... Our tailback (Tahj Ramsey) started a couple games for us (and played) in some late game situations. He’ll get a lot of carries this year, replacing an almost 2,000-yard back. He’s got big shoes to fill.”

Defensively, the Vikings return two linebackers as well as two starters in the secondary, safety Jarquez Bizzell and cornerback Daenard Branch.

“Defensively, I think we’re going to be a lot of he same,” Gieselman said. “Offensively, we’re still trying to find our identity right now. We’re going to try to control the clock with the run game and throw a pass here or there to keep people on their toes.”

The Vikings open the season Aug. 19 at home against Farmville Central, making this weekend’s jamboree important as they continue final preparations for the Jaguars.

“It’s big time. It’s a great event. We’re glad to be here,” Gieselman said. “This is the last event for the summertime and it got us going last year. So it’s very important.”